Consultant Services for the 2025 Blueprint Environmental Impact Report

I. Purpose and NeedIn accordance with environmental compliance procedures under federal metropolitan planning law and regulations, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) statutes and guidelines, and other relevant federal and state environmental laws and regulations; the Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG) is soliciting proposals from qualified firms for professional services to prepare a Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR) for the 2025 Metropolitan Transportation Plan (MTP)/Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS) (MTP/SCS), better known as the “2025 Blueprint.”II. SACOG OverviewSACOG is designated by the federal government as the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) for El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, and Yuba Counties. In partnership with its 28 member cities and counties, SACOG addresses complex challenges impacting the region, particularly related to transportation, housing, and land use, air quality, and climate change. SACOG, designated

by the Federal government as the MPO, oversees the regional transportation plan for the Sacramento region. SACOG must complete regular updates to the MTP/SCS at least every four years in coordination with local government agencies including all six counties, 22 cities, transit operators, the local Caltrans District (District 3), and others. As designated by the State of California, Placer and El Dorado counties serve as Regional Transportation Planning Agencies (RTPAs) for those counties, and are responsible for their state-level transportation plans. SACOG, functioning as the RTPA for Sacramento, Sutter, Yolo, and Yuba counties, collaborates with Placer County Transportation Planning Agency (PCTPA) and El Dorado County Transportation Commission (EDCTC) to maintain consistency across county plans and the broader regional framework. To learn more about SACOG, please visit: https://www.sacog.org/homeBackgroundIII. Overview of the Metropolitan Transportation Plan/Sustainable Communities StrategiesFederal and State legislation mandate long range transportation planning be done every four years and cover a period of at least 20 years into the future. For the 2025 Blueprint, SACOG received legislative authorization through Assembly Bill (AB) 350 (Aguiar-Curry) to extend the (MTP/SCS) schedule, which moved the plan adoption date from Spring 2024 to Fall 2025. This legislation allows the current SCS to remain in compliance with state law while SACOG works on the update anticipated for adoption in November or December of 2025. The legislation was approved by the Governor on October 10, 2023. This legislation went into effect on January 1, 2024.As work moves forward on this major update of the MTP/SCS, SACOG is still required to maintain a federally compliant Metropolitan Transportation Plan. To ensure consistency with federal requirements, SACOG adopted the 2023 Federal MTP plan on November 2023 (four years after the adoption of the 2020 MTP/SCS). This plan largely carried forward the projects, programs, and policies included in the 2020 MTP/SCS.Metropolitan Transportation PlanDevelopment of the MTP, sometime referred to as a Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) is mandated by Federal and State law and is one of SACOG’s primary responsibilities. The MTP is used to guide the development of the Federal Transportation Improvement Programs (FTIP) as well as other transportation programming documents and plans. The MTP outlines the region's goals and policies for meeting current and future mobility needs, providing a foundation for transportation decisions by local, regional, state and federal officials that are ultimately aimed at achieving a coordinated and balanced transportation system. The MTP projects future growth of population, households, and employment; identifies the region's transportation issues and needs; sets forth actions, policies, programs, and a plan of projects to address the needs consistent with adopted policies and goals; and documents the financial resources needed to implement the plan.Per federal planning requirements, the MTP must address no less than a 20-year planning horizon and include long-range and short-range strategies and actions that support the development of an integrated multimodal transportation system. The MTP must include a fiscally constrained financial plan that demonstrates how the MTP can be implemented, and how the transportation system can be operated and maintained, using revenues reasonably expected to be available over the planning horizon. The MTP also has many additional requirements including, but not limited to, public participation and compliance with the federal Clean Air Act.Sustainable Communities StrategiesIn accordance with the Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act of 2008, or Senate Bill (SB) 375 (Steinberg), the MTP is required to include an SCS which details strategies to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from automobiles and light-duty trucks. As one of the State’s 18 MPOs, SACOG must prepare an SCS that demonstrates the region’s ability to attain GHG emission-reduction targets set by CARB through integrated land use and transportation planning. Additionally, if the combination of measures in the SCS would not meet the regional GHG emission reduction target, the MPO must prepare a separate Alternative Planning Strategy (APS) to demonstrate that if implemented, the GHG target would be met. The APS is a separate document from the MTP but may be adopted concurrently with the MTP.SACOG’s 2025 Blueprint will be a long-range plan that balances future mobility, accessibility, and housing needs with the Board adopted Triple Bottom Line Policy Framework for the plan, of equity, economy, and environment. The 2025 Blueprint will represent a collective vision for the region’s future and will be developed with input from the general public, local government agencies including all six counties, the 22 cities within, transit operators, the local Caltrans District, and others. The previously adopted 2020 MTP/SCS had a horizon year of 2040. As such, the proposed 2025 Blueprint will have a horizon year of 2050.IV. Environmental Impact ReportThe 2025 MTP/SCS PEIR (hereafter referred to as the “2025 PEIR”) will be prepared in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).The 2025 PEIR will be a new standalone EIR for the 2025 MTP/SCS. The 2025 PEIR will be a program-level document that will analyze the cumulative effects of proposed actions, as well as transportation improvements and land use development discussed in the 2025 MTP/SCS. Additionally, the 2025 PEIR will identify strategies to avoid or mitigate those environmental impacts, where feasible. It will also provide the basis for further project-level CEQA (and possibly NEPA) compliance for the implementation of future projects. In accordance with Appendix G of the State CEQA Guidelines, the 2025 PEIR will analyze all (but not limited to) the following environmental factors:AestheticsMineral ResourcesAgriculture and Forestry ResourcesNoiseAir QualityPopulation/HousingBiological ResourcesPublic ServicesCultural ResourcesRecreationEnergyTransportationGeology/SoilsTribal Cultural ResourcesGreenhouse Gas EmissionsUtilities/Service SystemsHazards and Hazardous MaterialsWildfireHydrology/Water QualityMandatory Findings of SignificanceLand Use/Planning TimelineRelease Project Date:March 22, 2024Question Submission Deadline:April 5, 2024, 5:00pmQuestion Response Deadline:April 19, 2024, 5:00pmProposal Submission Deadline:May 3, 2024, 5:00pmContractor Selection Date:May 31, 2024